Game 1 Box Score

Game 2 Box Score

CHADRON, Neb. — Chadron State (10-15 overall, 9-11 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference) and Fort Lewis (9-14, 8-10) split a doubleheader today at the CSC Softball Field.

Hayley Bolyard smashed two homers and drove in six runs to lead the Skyhawks to a 12-6 win in the opener.

Katie Bolin hit a walk-off, two-run double with the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the seventh to lead the Eagles to a dramatic 11-10 victory in the nightcap.

After falling behind 3-0 in the opener, Fort Lewis took the lead with a big fourth inning that was highlighted by a three-run bomb to center by Bolyard and a two-run double to right by Kayla Bruner. All totaled, the Skyhawks pounded the Eagles for seven runs and seven hits in the frame.

Stephanie Janes and Erica Conley added RBI singles in the sixth to extend the lead to 9-3.

Chadron State trimmed the margin to 9-6 with a big inning of its own in the bottom of the sixth on a three-run shot by Amanda Jay.

Bolyard answered in the top of the seventh, though, with her second three-run blast of the game, this one a tater over the left field fence.

Kassie Haubert (7-5) went the distance for FLC to pick up the victory, surrendering six runs on 14 hits while striking out seven.

“We had a really nice pitching performance in game one,” said first-year FLC head coach Kira Zeiter.

Kate Pinder (4-9) took the loss for CSC, giving up seven runs on 10 hits and three walks in 4.1 innings of work. Stephanie Townsend fared little better, allowing five runs on four hits and two walks in two innings of relief.

Game two was a back-and-forth affair that saw offensive explosions in each half-inning from the fifth on.

“We had 15 hits today [in the second game], which was really nice,” said Zeiter. “We were able to string together those hits. The ending was a just a heartbreaker.”

Chadron State got three in the bottom of the first to take a 3-0 lead. Amy Schartz provided much of the offense with a two-run single to center.

The Skyhawks evened things up at 3-3 in the bottom of the third. Jordan Willis had an RBI single, followed by a meltdown by Chadron State pitcher Christina Lewis (6-2), who threw a wild pitch and an illegal pitch to score the next two FLC runs.

The top of the fifth is when things began to get crazy. Conley led off with a triple — FLC's first three-bagger of the season — and then scored on a bunt single by Cierra Walters. Bruner drove in Walters with an RBI single to right center.

The Eagles struck for four runs in the bottom of the fifth to reclaim the lead at 7-5. Katelyn McBeth's two-run double to left did much of the damage.

Walters gave FLC an 8-7 lead with a three-run homer to left in the top of the sixth.

Chadron State again reclaimed the lead with a pair of runs in their half of the sixth, thanks to an RBI double by Jamie Mazankowski and a run-scoring single by Schartz.

Fort Lewis strung together five hits in the top of the seventh, though, to retake a 10-9 lead. Bolyard and Destinee DeHerrera hit RBI singles to figure into the scoring.

The Eagles ultimately won the game on a two-run double by Bolin in the bottom of the seventh with one out and the bases loaded.

Stephanie Janes (0-3) faced the final 12 batters for the Skyhawks to take the loss, giving up four runs and eight hits in 1.1 innings of work. The Skyhawks used all three of their pitchers in the game, with Haubert starting but lasting just one batter before being lifted for Alyse Harris. Harris pitched 4.2 innings, allowing four runs on six hits.

Lewis went the distance for Chadron State, but was pummeled for 15 hits and 10 runs.

Fort Lewis plays a four-game set at Mesa State (12-13 overall, 10-10 RMAC) next weekend. Saturday's games are scheduled for noon and 2 p.m., with Sunday's games slated for 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.